Christophe Lemaitre "White Lightning" 9.92 and 19.80!

[ZELLGADISS]

Well in 100m this year his perfomances were bad in general but in 200 he has "good season".
He got wonderful 19.91 in bad conditions ind DL London.
And in OG he only had very bad luck in his semifinal with Blake and Spearmon.
Perhaps i can critics that he is not improving his bend and against best runners in the world it is very important.
But well 20.03 with negative wind is really good.

After in the final in horrible lane2 and a little tired after to run 20.03 he only got 20.19.
Im sure that if he runs in the semifinal with Bolt he gets 2nd place with 20.2-20.3 and after in the final by lane6 he could to be around 19.8

Sorry in my opinion he had bad luck in this OG.
And in 200 in general he was good this season, in 100 NO.

 

[jacknyc]

This has nothing to do with bad luck.

If Lemaitre was prepared and ready, he would have run fast enough in the semi to get an automatic qualifier for the finals. But he wasn't.
He got a fastest loser qualifier and thus the bad lane. That's how it works.
Then he had no endurance left to run in the final.
The guy didn't put in his work this year.
That is the real problem.
And it doesn't matter if he's young. He won't improve without proper training, work, and dedication.
Otherwise we'll be making the same excuses for him over the next 4 years.

 

[foobar75]

Well, WL and many of us who been concerned and critical of some of Lemaitre's training and decision making have been proven correct, unfortunately. London has been a disaster, when you consider our expectations. I would also respectfully ask people to stop looking for excuses like he's young and had bad luck, etc. He has blown a huge opportunity here. The biggest stage only comes around every 4 years so you have to make the best of your chances. Seeing what I call passive and somewhat defeatist attitude from Christophe and coach is highly disappointing. All this talk about not liking weights and wanting his engineering degree, and not wanting to leave his hometown makes me wonder how much does he want this stuff. You have the rest of your life to do whatever you want. But please, find some motivation and inspiration to spend the next 5-7 years becoming the best sprinter you can be, use your god given talents, and forget about all this other stuff.

 

[frederic38]

i agree with trackster, and jacknyc
i didn't want to post about him because i was very angry

and to zellgadiss, yes he got bad luck, and maybe it would have been different with an easier semifinal, but it doesn't change the fact that lemaitre didn't do what he had to do before these olympics

it was really shocking, he is as mentally weak as ever (i don't expect this to change as i said before, you have it or you don't have it, it will never change unfortunately) he looked scared before each race and made everybody nervous

he didn't work on his endurance (can't breath even 10 minutes after a race)

he didn't work on his power (affraid of the weights and his coach doesn't like them either, again that's a very well known problem in france, even in the 30's french sportsmen were already saying it)
like trackster said why would he have to train differently than any other sprinter?
in france everybody mentions that lemaitre looks like bolt because they are both tall and thin, but what are they on? bolt is a bodybuilder, yes, a BODYBUILDER

if i was responsible of athletics for france, i wouldn't have let christophe run, there is no way a kid with the body of someone who never trains can represent my country
i would have sent a random black bodybuilder instead to tell him a lesson

 

[frederic38]

this kid trains worse than athletes from somalia, no weight training and no endurance training, plus a bad diet, and he thought he was going to medal?
something is very well known in sports, when you win something you have to change everything to keep winning
after his medal at the world champs he should have trained in a different way, with a different coach, in a different place

 

[dwid]

Well, WL and many of us who been concerned and critical of some of Lemaitre's training and decision making have been proven correct, unfortunately. London has been a disaster, when you consider our expectations. I would also respectfully ask people to stop looking for excuses like he's young and had bad luck, etc. He has blown a huge opportunity here. The biggest stage only comes around every 4 years so you have to make the best of your chances. Seeing what I call passive and somewhat defeatist attitude from Christophe and coach is highly disappointing. All this talk about not liking weights and wanting his engineering degree, and not wanting to leave his hometown makes me wonder how much does he want this stuff. You have the rest of your life to do whatever you want. But please, find some motivation and inspiration to spend the next 5-7 years becoming the best sprinter you can be, use your god given talents, and forget about all this other stuff.

This is more on his trainer. You can say its all LeMaitre's fault but he is 22, how many of you had your heads on straight when you were 22? You need a trainer or some sort of person to push you to do the things you don't feel like doing to make you the best you can possibly be. Now with Carraz gone after this hopefully he has a better trainer.

Another thing about White sprinters burning out young, I think it might be because its just not fun anymore, other interests in life, lack of motivation. I mean how long can you be passionate about running in a straight line for a short time span? Whites have more complex brains. I mean everyone has motivation to win but it can be hard especially when you spend years right on the fringe of making it. Look at American Football, those guys have fun playing it, and the White players last well into their 30's in top shape.

 

[RCSMAN]

a lot of stupid and hysteric comments this evening!
It is sad !
The disappointment is not an excuse!

 

[trackster]

Well, it sounds like we're all in agreement here.

In my earlier comments, I've laid a lot of the blame (all year) on his coach. However, I find myself agreeing with Jack and others about losing respect for Christophe himself today.

Remember last year when he spent two weeks training in Miami with American sprinters? When he returned, it took him a couple of weeks to get his legs back because he was so worn out. He'd never trained that hard before. Subsequently, he ran the best times of his career. But what did he learn from that experience? He vowed that he would never go abroad and work that hard again.

The truth is, Christophe couldn't bring himself to leave his comfort zone. Carraz's workouts are p*ssy workouts.

Heck, all the Jamaicans start the season running 400s. Christophe, in the same season that he drops the 100 to specialize in the 200, never once ran a 400 or even a 300. Heck, how many 200s did he run this year? Three? And this was supposed to get him in shape how?

Christophe showed no heart this year. Ultimately, an athlete is responsible for himself, not his coach. Yes, Carraz coddled him, designed easy training for him, put him in almost no competitive races, ran him almost entirely against local club athletes, allowed him to avoid heavy lifting or endurance training, smiled while he ate cheeseburgers for every meal, and held him out of the 100, but ultimately it was up to Christophe to push himself, demand more races, change his diet, and go beyond the pathetic "training" Carraz designed.

And, yes, I agree that we something should be done about the Jamaican cheaters. But they didn't make Christophe run (if you can call it "running") 20.19 today. He is fully responsible for that.

 

[dwid]

well, that is the tough part, and still up to a coach to motivate him. How do you make him have heart? Frankly I don't know if he ever had that much invested in it. Hes just some random kid they found in the middle of nowhere, who didn't know much about sprinting, but happened to be incredibly gifted at running (there are probably a ton more like him). Its not like these other guys who grow up dreaming up running the 100 meter. He probably is more passionate about other things in life, track was just a way to elevate him up in life. Hopefully he does have the will to win. It is said that our brains do not fully form until the age of 24. Hopefully he gets his head on straight soon.

 

[elispeedster]

We saw Pickering and Shirvington decline at young ages, so Lemaitre's regression this year is especially concerning. Something has to change. If he comes back next year with Carraz and no weight training, we'll be looking for our next prospect.

What was that German kid's name?

I agree,but Pickring and Shirvo were strong guys who lifted heavy wights, they ran with power. Christophe is naturally much faster then they are. He has more upside..

My Take:

1. Carraz knows what to do, but he is an old man, and is a grandfather to Chrsiotphe. Carraz gives in to Christophe lack of wanting to lift weights, like a grandfather giving a cookie to his spoiled crying grandson.

Carraz: Chrsiophe, time to squat and power clean 4xs a week.... and run 400's
Chrisophe: WAH!
Carraz: Okay Okay son, today we run with red cones, tomorrow blue cones.


2. When you strive for third, you will always end up 4th. I dont care if it is realistic or not, you compete to win. If bolt runs 18 seconds, build your mind to run 17 seconds...this will force your body to perform at its most highest peak. Lemaitre has been conditioned to believe he will never match Bolt, Blake etc. BAD THINKING!

It is like in my boxing class. As I hit the bag, the trainer tells me not to...he tells me to hit through the bag, a target beyond it. Now, no one can punch through a heavy bag, but this thinking made me a better puncher - faster and stronger in a few seconds, because my mind believed I could hit through the heavy bag. It forced my body to adapt quickly and at a higher peak of power.

3. Heavy Weights and Power training. Christophe's torso is that of a woman. He lifts less than the womens 100 meter team form Khazaktsan. And Im not trying to be funny.


2 things can come out of this failure - either he really motivates himself out of anger to do better, or he will hang up his shoes.

 

[jacknyc]

I understand that people have other interests in life, but this was a once in a lifetime opportunity. THE OLYMPICS!
He should have been smart enough to fully focus on this for one solid year. He's 22 yrs old. He has the entire rest of his life to entertain other interests.

And now what?
If Lemaitre can't get motivated to train hard for the Olympics, what should we expect from him next year?! or the next 3 years?!
We may never see the Lemaitre we knew, again.
Bloody, bloody shame.

 

[dwid]

I understand that people have other interests in life, but this was a once in a lifetime opportunity. THE OLYMPICS!
He should have been smart enough to fully focus on this for one solid year. He's 22 yrs old. He has the entire rest of his life to entertain other interests.

And now what?
If Lemaitre can't get motivated to train hard for the Olympics, what should we expect from him next year?! or the next 3 years?!
We may never see the Lemaitre we knew, again.
Bloody, bloody shame.

well hopefully something clicks in his brain about how much potential he is wasting. Trust me I have seen many changes in people from 21-22 to 26. At 22 hes not thinking about the rest of his life, hes thinking about now now now, that kind of thinking has gotten worse with each generation but he will change. We will never see the LeMaitre we knew, but we may see an improved version.

 

[Francois the Postman]

When you have Bolt squatting 320Kg's & Lemaitre basically nothing...

[video=youtube;VkVNMiaFcX8]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VkVNMiaFcX8[/video]


Of course Bolt is going to have the superior engine, he's worked harder.

Who deserves it?. Obviously not Lemaitre.

 

[sport historian]

Jeremy Wariner in the 400 also declined at a young age. Did he even try to make the U.S. Olympic team this year?

Anybody ever hear of a sprinter who declined at age 22 from what he was at 20 coming back stronger at 26?

 

[Tside]

It has all been said in the previous posts. CL needs a complete change in order to get to the next level. Everything must change. If he continues to train the way he has, then expect the same if not worse next year. A REAL SHAME. I love watching CL run and I guarantee you he is the one of only a few clean athletes, but even for him 20.19 seconds was horrible.

 

[Tside]

A Jamaican sweep is FAKE FAKE FAKE. You expect me to believe a country with 2.5 million people can do damage like this just because "it is their national sport". BULL. If another 1st world country with a similar population size of Jamaica, like Ireland, Norway or New Zealand were taking all the medals on both the mens and womens sprints, it would be straight away down to drugs. Jamaican athletes get a free pass right now to dope. Victor Conte and Charlie Francis knew this. Weir running 19.84 out of nowhere. COMICAL. R.I.P. CL. Unfortunately you can not beat these cheats and it will the same next year. Dirty athletes run faster than clean athletes.

 

[Tside]

Also, look at Warren Weir's build. Slim and very similar to CL. He has a chest like a Chinese Table Tennis player. Runs 20.43 PB last year, this year 19.84. Check the photo:http://www.voice-online.co.uk/article/warren-weir-good-company

 

[jaxvid]

The Lemaitre bashers need to get real. The difference in this contest is DRUGS. If Lemaitre roids up then he too can win medals. Has a White man ever done this?

Yes Kenteris.

Did Kenteris win? Yes he did. This same race you are crying that CL was not competitive in.

CL is one of the fastest men in the world. If he did the drugs he would be faster. Do you really think these guys that are running record times are clean??? Why are they running faster then proven cheats? Because they are cheats too. Until CL or any other White man gets on the PED's you will not have a White champion. It's that simple.

Complaining about his coach, his workout, his attitude, is all besides the point. It's the PEDs!!!

 

[limitless]

Bolt's squat

320 kg!

That's over 700 lbs! No wonder he's so confident.

When he cycles his drugs right (and it's obvious he does), he walks on to the track with the more horsepower to weight than anyone else. He's like a Bugatti Veyron.

 

[limitless]

Bolt on Carl Lewis

Did he ever. "Carl Lewis, I have no respect for him," Bolt said. "The things he says about the track athletes are very downgrading. I think he's just looking for attention because nobody really talks about him.
"I've lost all respect for him. All respect."
Bolt was asked what caused him to lose respect for Lewis.
"All drug stuff," he responded.
Four years ago, when Bolt exploded in Beijing by winning three gold medals, Lewis specifically questioned Bolt's huge time drop in the 100 meters, from 10.03 to 9.69 in the course of a year.
"If you don't question that in a sport that has the reputation it has right now, you're a fool," Lewis said. "Period."
Back to the present and back to you, Bolt.
"For an athlete to be out of the sport and be saying that is really upsetting," he said Thursday night.
Actually, Bolt took a shot at Lewis earlier in the night in the media zone just off the track. There, he was asked a drug-related question that did involve the name "Victor Conte" but did not involve the name "Carl Lewis." Yet Bolt went there on his own.
Usain Bolt, center, celebrates before receiving his gold medal for winning the 200. (AP)"It's really amazing when people talk stupid stuff," Bolt said. "Lewis, nobody remembers who he is. … We [the Jamaicans] work hard, we push ourselves to the limit. I shouldn't even have to respond to that."

 

[white lightning]

Yeah and tell me how many natural sprinters can squat over 700lbs? How many body builders can do that. Hell you would have to be similar to a olympic lifter to lift that type of weight. I have had enough Koolaid to last a life time. Enough of this sh**.

I am still a huge fan of Christophe despite his lack of proper preparatation, a below average diet, almost no strength training program and a coach who should be in a nursing home. Sorry if that's a llttle harsh. I like Carraz as a person but he cannot take Christphe to the next level. If anything he has hurt him more than he has helped him in the last year or two. Christophe is far too talented to be struggling to go sub 10 and sub 20. There really lucky Vicaut didn't make the finals because it would have been even worse as far as their decision goes.

This is to Christophe if you read this. I know you hate to lose. So do I. It's time for you to be a man and to take the steps necessary to become an olympic champion. You need to do whatever possible. Change everything. Diet, Weight Training, Coach, Plyometrics and also add some hill running both up and down. Barefoot sprinting also helps to increase your speed. The biggest thing is a new coach and to develop strength like the elite sprinters out there. It won't be easy but it will be worth it. Very few people on earth have the talent that you were born with. It's time to build on that foundation and to prepare for the next war in 2016!

 

[elispeedster]

When you have Bolt squatting 320Kg's & Lemaitre basically nothing...

[video=youtube;VkVNMiaFcX8]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VkVNMiaFcX8[/video]


Of course Bolt is going to have the superior engine, he's worked harder.

Who deserves it?. Obviously not Lemaitre.

LOL! Bolt does not squat 320Kg...I believe it is the amount of force he produces with each foot strike. There is no official confirmation of his weight room amount, if there was, it would be fully known.

There is a video of him doing hang cleans with 135 pounds for about 10 reps, which is not too difficult, expect for Lemaitre who maxes out at 135 pounds...sorry I had to throw that in there.

 

[elispeedster]

Yeah and tell me how many natural sprinters can squat over 700lbs? How many body builders can do that. Hell you would have to be similar to a olympic lifter to lift that type of weight. I have had enough Koolaid to last a life time. Enough of this sh**.

I am still a huge fan of Christophe despite his lack of proper preparatation, a below average diet, almost no strength training program and a coach who should be in a nursing home. Sorry if that's a llttle harsh. I like Carraz as a person but he cannot take Christphe to the next level. If anything he has hurt him more than he has helped him in the last year or two. Christophe is far too talented to be struggling to go sub 10 and sub 20. There really lucky Vicaut didn't make the finals because it would have been even worse as far as their decision goes.

This is to Christophe if you read this. I know you hate to lose. So do I. It's time for you to be a man and to take the steps necessary to become an olympic champion. You need to do whatever possible. Change everything. Diet, Weight Training, Coach, Plyometrics and also add some hill running both up and down. Barefoot sprinting also helps to increase your speed. The biggest thing is a new coach and to develop strength like the elite sprinters out there. It won't be easy but it will be worth it. Very few people on earth have the talent that you were born with. It's time to build on that foundation and to prepare for the next war in 2016!

Chrisophe should come to train in Florida, like he did 2 years ago where he got scared of the amount of work and overtrained, but yet produced his best times that year because his body was adapting to that style of training and getting results.

Christophe is a chicken! sorry, but that is the truth. A guy with his talent and he lets it go because his handlers convince him to go for bronze and baby him like a child...I wish the higher up gave me his talent, I know what to do with it. I would shove it into the Jamaicans face. Stick my tongue out to Bolt and Blake's bloated HGH infused head. Im getting more pissed after finally watching the race.

 

[jacknyc]

The Lemaitre bashers need to get real. The difference in this contest is DRUGS. If Lemaitre roids up then he too can win medals. Has a White man ever done this?

Yes Kenteris.

Did Kenteris win? Yes he did. This same race you are crying that CL was not competitive in.

CL is one of the fastest men in the world. If he did the drugs he would be faster. Do you really think these guys that are running record times are clean??? Why are they running faster then proven cheats? Because they are cheats too. Until CL or any other White man gets on the PED's you will not have a White champion. It's that simple.

Complaining about his coach, his workout, his attitude, is all besides the point. It's the PEDs!!!

You are missing the point.
Yes, the Jamaicans are probably taking PEDs.
But regardless of what they do, it has no bearing on the fact that Lemaitre didn't do anything to IMPROVE HIMSELF this year.
No one expected Lemaitre to win a gold medal running against Bolt and Blake. But we did have the reasonable expectation that he would improve himself and his performance in an Olympic Year.
He could have, he should have, won the bronze.
But he obviously didn't put in the work and training to do that, and that is what is so annoying.

 

[foobar75]

Jaxvid, I don't think we're overdoing this "Lemaitre bashing". We are extremely proud of what this young man has done, having broken the 10s barrier, and we had very high expectations of him. Instead, he has let us know in a big way, and so I think we need to vent our frustrations. As jacknyc has said, Christophe does not appear to have done even half of what it would take to prepare in an Olympic year. There's this casualness and passiveness about him which is extremely disappointing to me. Maybe it's the coach, I don't know.

They did a segment on Alysson Felix and her coach Bob Kersee, and in so many words, it was made clear that Kersee is basically an a-hole. He's not there to be her friend, he's there to push her and get results. Felix admitted this, and said some days, she tries hard to remind herself that ultimately, Kersee has her best interests in mind, which tells you what a tough, hard-ass coach he must be. This is what Christophe needs.

Then again, you can only lead a horse to water. If Christophe himself does not have the motivation and burning desire to be the best, even the greatest coach can only do so much. What happened today could be a turning point. Either this disaster will fuel him to do whatever it takes to get to the next level, or he will slowly fade away and we need start looking for the next White hope. An outcome like this makes it tough to defend white sprinters against DWFs.